OREANDA-NEWS. July 26, 2016. Sometimes it takes a few triggers for someone to decide it’s time to take charge of their health. Nancy Gallo’s metabolic syndrome testing at work had showed she was out of the normal range for several risk factors. Then she had an injury, and in the emergency center had to tell them her weight. So when her employer’s wellness program reached out to her to offer personalized help, she decided it was time to make a change.

She agreed to work with a health coach as part of a new, personalized wellness program created by Aetna and Newtopia. They tested her DNA and built a personalized program for her.

“We tailored my diet based on what my markers were,” Gallo said. “I checked in with my coach every week at first and then every two weeks and we went over my progress for the past week to make sure that I was sticking with my plan.”

The results came quickly. “I probably lost 50 pounds within the first six months, so it was really quick at first and then it was just a little slower for like the next year and a half,” Gallo said.

Now, she says, her metabolic syndrome tests all come back normal — blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, blood glucose, and waist circumference.

Gallo encourages others who may have been thinking about doing something, to take action. “You have nothing to lose, except a lot of weight.”